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Crowdsourcing: A Definition

I like to use two definitions for crowdsourcing:

The White Paper Version: Crowdsourcing is the act of taking a job traditionally performed by a designated agent (usually an employee) and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call.

The Soundbyte Version: The application of Open Source principles to fields outside of software.

The Rise of Crowdsourcing

Read the original article about crowdsourcing, published in the June, 2006 issue of Wired Magazine.

March 11, 2009

If Crowdsourcing is Evil, This is its Soundtrack

Comments

Very interesting article and debate. No, I do not believe crowd sourcing is evil, I believe it it the purest form of egalitarianism. The design, first and foremost, is what is important; not the title of the designer, the connections he/she have, nor the school he/she graduated from.

I founded RYZWEAR.com, a crowd sourced sneaker brand as a way to tap into an ever growing population of free-lance designers who did not want to work in a corporate environment and did not want to spend hours upon hours of "pitching" themselves to companies for project work. The first winner of our contest was an ex-convict (who might struggle to find a job) who was arrested several times due to his graffiti habit. He ended up spending two years in prison. He was living in a basement apartment, in debt to the city of Portland Oregon for $15,000 and trying to make a living as an artist. Handing over to him, a check for $1,000, was one of the most satisfying things I have done in my career. Next month, he will be featured in a retail launch.

I believe that the crowd sourcing model is an extremely efficient use of a designers time. If the crowd sourcing model continues to grow, there will be thousands upon thousands of contests and if they are talented and hard working, chances are they will win lots of contests and earn a good living.

The designers that I have contact with from RYZwear all appreciate the opportunity. If they win, their picture is on the hang tag of the product and we try to create rock stars out of them.

Design is a process, one of the end products is sometimes graphics. Often no graphics are involved at all. The design process cannot be effectively crowdsourced, by it's nature it requires direct and substantial collaboration with the client.

Graphic art, on the other hand, is just making images. Make enough of them randomly, and one of them will work. That's what you're doing with crowdsourcing.

Bottom line, you can crowdsource a randomizable product. You cannot crowdsource a process.

“there's also the factor of who chooses the artwork and managerial types don't always understand design--in fact rarely understand design.”

David, I have experienced this so often. Ultimately this reality does give each of us the opportunity to make sure that we are working in an environment that gives its due to those who are best suited to manage particular elements. Not necessarily the strong point of traditional institutional life!

Institutional biography has been a particular interest of mine and that’s where the rubber hits the road! Once one’s own biographical stream starts to peal away from the institution that one has melded with, where ones creative juices are no longer contributing to the overall forward movement of the institution, or one can no longer stand behind the overall direction or working principles, tough decisions have to be made.

“then you're starting with a tainted pool of talent rather than a pool of professionals, and the overall quality goes down.”

I do not really understand why a stay at home mother would be considered to be tainted. The quality might possibly go down but it could also produce something superior. Is the greater question about principles rather than an open artistic process? Cheers David

Jeff, very interesting but as you stated evil or at least pretty close. The soundtrack has already started to grind away some where in the recesses of my skull. That particular example of crowdsourcing doesn’t do much for a discussion about the possible quality’s thereof though, that’s for sure.

Having been involved in a logo design process I think you make a very good point Joshua. How could one possibly design a logo not having had an on-going relationship with the client, after all the logo should ideally manifest, in visual form, the complicated internal impulse/impulses of the institution in mind?

Were one to follow that train of thought, the only conclusion one could come to would be that those who need a logo and reach to CS for it are going to get a some what more superficial rendering, be extremely lucky or not be worried because the budget is not there and close enough is, well, close enough.

I must add that for the most part, the subtleties of logo design, once utilized, are not penetrated by the majority of those who might perceive it as part of a larger document or visual of any other media.

So the question, what’s wrong with having different ranks of need. Big budget logo, no problem flash the cash and the professional designer gets the job. Low budget logo, scrape the barrel, and it what it is, some thing that’s stuck on for what its worth!

Second question, do CS logo graphic artists have a direct relationship with the client?

David, I have experienced this so often. Ultimately this reality does give each of us the opportunity to make sure that we are working in an environment that gives its due to those who are best suited to manage particular elements. Not necessarily the strong point of traditional institutional life! thanks for sharing this blog

Institutional biography has been a particular interest of mine and that’s where the rubber hits the road! Once one’s own biographical stream starts to peal away from the institution that one has melded with, where ones creative juices are no longer contributing to the overall forward movement of the institution, or one can no longer stand behind the overall direction or working principles, tough decisions have to be made.

Having been involved in a logo design process I think you make a very good point Joshua. How could one possibly design a logo not having had an on-going relationship with the client, after all the logo should ideally manifest, in visual form, the complicated internal impulse/impulses of the institution in mind?

Were one to follow that train of thought, the only conclusion one could come to would be that those who need a logo and reach to CS for it are going to get a some what more superficial rendering, be extremely lucky or not be worried because the budget is not there and close enough is, well, close enough.

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